Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 3

The latest of the Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm series published by NamcoBandaiGames and developed by CyberConnect 2 is a 3D fighting game. 2 player mode is available with the option of playing on a team with one main fighter and supporting characters (limited to one move unlike a tag game).

The game’s graphics seem very polished compared to the previous ones. The game play is much more smooth and reaction time is quicker than the previous installment. Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 is just as exciting as Ultimate Ninja Storm 1, Ultimate Ninja Storm 2, and generations, but what we Naruto fans basically wait for are new characters from the latest season of the anime to show up in the game as playable fighters. The Naruto battle experience is not like your classic fighting games such as Tekken, Street Fighter, and Mortal Kombat, where you have right and left punches, and right and left kicks. In this game you have attack, throw kunai, jump, chakra charge, throw, block and the directional pad is sort of a fanny pack with very limited bombs and power ups. Most of the features mimic previous Naruto games which will make any die hard fan happy.

The demo showed a very limited character selection, so naturally I picked Naruto because I couldn’t find any girls. My opponent chose Mifune of the Land of Iron. I witnessed this player as the first samurai of the series yet to be a playable character in the video game. Every other fighter is a ninja. So I was interested in seeing his “Ultimate Jutsu” which is the most powerful ninja move. Samurai are not ninja and have no Jutsu. Well Lo and Behold he had a Jutsu or something of the like in which he sliced someone up. It looked good! It’s in black and white to give us a nice mental effect. It was just as fun as its predecessors. I would definitely recommend this game whether you are a Naruto fan or not because of the game’s unique battle system. This new style of fighting forces you to think more critically during a match.

Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 is to be released Spring of 2013 both in North America and Japan on PS3and XBOX 360.

Sonic & All Stars Racing Transformed

The version of the demo that was available for play was for XBOX360. The button configuration, interestingly enough, used [R2] for gas, [R1/L1] drift, and [X] to activate specials you picked up during the race. I don’t care for the break button since I don’t believe in breaking during a race. The game’s graphics were pretty decent for a racing game but I honestly feel it could have been better. You can play many characters from the All Stars lineup making an appearance from SEGAgames such as Super Monkey Ball, Jet Set Radio, and Knights into Dreams… in addition to personalized console racers such as a Mii.

With difficulty choices ranging from easy to hard, and driving settings between Auto and Manual, the game seems like any other typical racing game out there. I played as Sonic on the automatic setting. I was able to complete the race in first place easily without having to worry about drifting or breaking. One feature of the game that I am skeptical about is that you can no longer grab All Star abilities from item boxes. Alternatively, now racers build up an All Star meter and can use the ability whenever they want during the race. You can build the meter when you grab stars along the course and do tricks in the air. The more behind in the race you are, the more you fill up your meter quicker than those up front.

This racing game is really in tune with the terrain you are racing on. If you are at a stage where you are racing on water, the waves affect your driving and you can also get boosts and tricks off of big waves into the air. If you are in an aerial course the dynamics are: ascending slows racers down, and descending speeds them up. This game I would recommend buying if you are a big SEGA fan because you can hear familiar songs from the respective games. Also it is great to play when you have company over since there is a 4 way split screen for multiplayer mode.